4102.0 - Australian Social Trends, 2001
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 06/06/2001
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Housing Stock: Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander housing in non-remote areas
Location of households In 1999, approximately 82% of the Indigenous population and 99% of the non-Indigenous population lived in non-remote areas. Two thirds of these Indigenous households were located in New South Wales and Queensland. Information about Indigenous housing in remote areas can be found in Australian Social Trends 2000, Housing in remote Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The majority of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous households in non-remote areas were located in urban areas (91% and 88% respectively), although Indigenous households were less likely to be found in major urban areas (48% compared with 64% of non-Indigenous households). A lower proportion of Indigenous households (9%) were in non-remote rural areas compared with non-Indigenous households (12%). LOCATION OF HOUSEHOLDS, 1999 Source: 1999 Australian Housing Survey, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results (ABS cat. no. 4712.0). Household composition The composition of a household is generally related to the age and stage of life of its members. Many of the reported differences in household composition between Indigenous and non-Indigenous households can be attributed to the younger age profile of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population (stemming from their higher fertility rate and lower life expectancy). For more information see Australian Social Trends 2000, Social conditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Couples with children made up 40% of Indigenous households in non-remote areas, compared with 33% of non-Indigenous households. The proportion of one-parent families was also higher in Indigenous households (15%) compared with non-Indigenous households (8%). Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were less likely to be living alone (17% of households) than non-Indigenous people (24% of households). However, the lower proportion of lone-person households in the Indigenous population can be partly attributed to their younger age profile, as nearly half of the non-Indigenous people living alone were aged 60 years and over. The proportion of group households was similar for both the Indigenous (5%) and non-Indigenous (4%) populations. HOUSEHOLD COMPOSITION AND DWELLING UTILISATION, 1999
Housing utilisation and condition Housing utilisation is an indicator of crowding in a dwelling, calculated according to the number of bedrooms available to a household in proportion to its size and composition (the ABS has used the Canadian National Occupancy Standard as a model as it is considered to conform reasonably to social norms in Australia). As overcrowding can accelerate the deterioration of a dwelling and aggravate environmental health problems,1 the reported level of housing utilisation can reflect the quality of a household’s housing conditions. In 1999, Indigenous households in non-remote areas had a higher average number of usual residents (3.3) than non-Indigenous households (2.6). However, this was lower than the 3.6 persons per Indigenous household reported in the 1991 Census. While the majority (95%) of Australian households had enough bedrooms for their needs, 13% of Indigenous households needed more bedrooms to adequately accommodate all members of the household (compared with 4% for non-Indigenous households). Over 87% of the Indigenous households needing more bedrooms were renting their dwelling. Indigenous households in non-remote areas were also more likely than non-Indigenous households to report that their dwelling was in need of repair (interior and/or exterior), especially if they lived in a rented dwelling. Overall, 20% of Indigenous households reported that their dwelling was in high need of repair (26% for those renting) compared with 7% of non-Indigenous households (13% for those renting). NEED FOR REPAIRS TO DWELLING, 1999 Source: 1999 Australian Housing Survey, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results (ABS cat. no. 4712.0). Nature of occupancy In 1999, Indigenous households in non-remote areas were more likely to be renting their home (58%) than non-Indigenous households (27%). Of those Indigenous households which rented, 39% were renting their home from a State housing authority, compared with 18% of non-Indigenous households which rented. In 1999, 39% of Indigenous households either owned or were purchasing their own home, compared with 71% of non-Indigenous households. The proportion of Indigenous households which owned their home outright was also much lower (13%) than for non-Indigenous households (39%). As household tenure is closely associated with age, it is likely that the younger age profile of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander population is at least partly responsible for their higher proportion of renters and lower proportion of home owners. Applying (age) standardisation allows a more valid comparison of types of tenure, by presenting the rates which might occur if both populations had the same age profile as the overall Australian population. Using standardised figures, 43% of Indigenous households in non-remote areas were home owners or purchasers, compared with 71% of non-Indigenous households. While the proportion of Indigenous households owning their dwelling outright was similar to the proportion of Indigenous households with a mortgage (21% and 22% respectively), a larger proportion of non-Indigenous households owned their home outright (39% compared with 32% with a mortgage). After standardisation, there was still a higher proportion of renters in the Indigenous population (46%), compared with the non-Indigenous population (26%). Similar proportions of Indigenous and non-Indigenous households were renting from private landlords (19% and 20% respectively), but a higher proportion of Indigenous households were renting from a State housing authority (23% compared with 5% for non-Indigenous households). HOUSEHOLD TENURE, 1999
(b) Includes other renters. (c) Includes rent-free and other tenures. Source: 1999 Australian Housing Survey, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results (ABS cat. no. 4712.0). Housing costs Housing costs can involve a range of components, including mortgage repayments, rent, rates, land tax, and body corporate fees, which vary depending on the tenure type of the household. In 1999, the average weekly housing cost across all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander households in non-remote areas was $139. This compared with $129 for non-Indigenous households, which reflected, at least partly, the different proportions of owners and renters in the two populations. Purchasing a home often represented a larger financial burden for Indigenous households, with 37% spending more than a quarter of their weekly income on housing costs (compared with 25% of non-Indigenous homebuyers). As Indigenous people have a lower median income than non-Indigenous people (see Australian Social Trends 2000, Social conditions of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people), this level of financial commitment is more likely to cause housing-related income stress than for non-Indigenous households (see Australian Social Trends 2000, Housing costs). A similar proportion of both Indigenous and non-Indigenous households renting from private landlords spent more than 25% of their weekly income on housing costs (38% of Indigenous households and 39% of non-Indigenous households). In contrast, the financial burden for households renting from a State housing authority was often considerably less, with 24% of Indigenous households and 15% of non-Indigenous households paying less than 15% of their weekly income on housing costs. HOUSING COSTS AS PROPORTION OF HOUSEHOLD INCOME, 1999
(b) Includes households with housing costs not known or with nil or negative income. Source: 1999 Australian Housing Survey, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results (ABS cat. no. 4712.0). Housing history There is a certain level of wellbeing and social attachment a household gains from having secure or permanent tenure on their home. Moving house often involves a financial cost and disruption to established community networks. The high proportion of renters within the Indigenous population meant that Indigenous households were generally more mobile than non-Indigenous households. In 1999, 63% of the reference persons for Indigenous households in non-remote areas had lived in their current dwelling for less than five years, compared with 44% of the reference persons for non-Indigenous households. Two thirds of these persons in Indigenous households (42% of all Indigenous household reference persons) had been in their current dwelling twelve months or less. Reference persons in Indigenous households also tended to move more often, with 32% moving three or more times in the preceding five years, compared with 17% in non-Indigenous households. However, reference persons in Indigenous households were more likely to move within the same suburb, town, or locality (48%) than non-Indigenous households (39%). They were also more likely to move within the same state, with 3% moving interstate compared with 5% of reference persons in non-Indigenous households. HOUSING HISTORY(a), 1999
(b) Applies only to household reference persons who had been in their current dwelling less than nine years. Source: 1999 Australian Housing Survey, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Results (ABS cat. no. 4712.0). Endnotes 1 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission, Issues, <URL:http://www.hreoc.gov.au/social_justice/index.html> (Accessed 7 March 2001).
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